Iconically Californian, towering, beautiful and majestic, Eucalyptus trees have been a favorite theme of California Impressionist and landscape painters for over a century.

“Eucalyptus trees provide a source of nectar and pollen that attracts insects, which in turn serve as a prey base for birds and other animals. Hummingbirds and many migratory bird species feed extensively on the nectar. In addition, eucalyptus trees produce an abundant seed crop. These tall trees are used as roosting sites for birds. Bald eagles have roosted in eucalyptus groves in the San Pablo Reservoir watershed, and a great blue heron rookery exists in the eucalyptus trees at Watershed Headquarters in Orinda. A great blue heron and great egret rookery was active near the northern arm of Chabot Reservoir in the recent past.”--East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD).

Over 400,000 trees will fall to the chainsaw, including Eucalyptus, Monterey Pine, and Acacia. Although all are scheduled for clear-cutting, proponents of deforestation hold out a special hatred of Eucalyptus. In fact, they have worked tirelessly to turn public opinion in the East Bay against Eucalyptus trees since the Firestorm of 1991. Chief among their claims is that these trees were to blame for the ferocity of that fire because we are told they possess unusually high quantities of volatile oils that make them more flammable and prone to shooting off embers which enable the spread of fire. These claims have been repeated so many times they are often regarded as self-evident, even though the science does not support them.

David Maloney, a former Oakland Firefighter and Chief of Fire Prevention at the Oakland Army Base, is instructive: "Such a determination is putting ideological or economic considerations ahead of the safety of firefighters and the public, and gives rise to propagandistic statements which are designed to scare the public, which have no basis in fire science... Fire Science has proven that every living tree -- regardless of its species -- due to its moisture content and canopy coverage of ground fuels, contributes to wildfire hazard mitigation." For example, fog drip has been measured in Monterey pines in the East Bay at over 10 inches per year. In San Francisco, fog drip in the Eucalyptus forest was measured at over 16 inches per year.Moreover, Bay laurels, a preferred species by “native” plant advocates, possess higher oil content than Eucalyptus, Acacia, and Monterey Pine and yet these trees will not be removed. According to Cornell University, essential/volatile oils in Blue Gum Eucalyptus leaves range from less than 1.5 to over 3.5%. While the leaves of native California bay laurel trees contain 7.5% of essential/volatile oils, more than twice the amount of oil in leaves of Blue Gums.

Not only are these Eucalyptus trees "very fire resistant" according to Maloney, but they are majestic and beautiful, provide nesting sites for hawks, owls and other birds, are one of the few sources of nectar for Northern California bees in the winter, prevent soil erosion in the hills, trap particulate pollution all year around, and sequester carbon. Here’s more:

Over 100 species of birds use Eucalyptus trees as habitat.

Monarch butterflies depend on Eucalyptus during the winter.

Eucalyptus trees increase biodiversity. A 1990 survey in Tilden Park found 38 different species beneath the main canopy of Eucalyptus forests, compared to only 18 in Oak woodlands.

In a climate such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Eucalyptus trees can live 400-500 years. As such, the oldest trees in the East Bay have plenty of life left in them.

Eucalyptus trees benefit other trees. Eucalyptus forest boundaries remain stable and in fact, Eucalyptus forests in the Bay Area have naturally declined between 1939 and 1997. Meanwhile, they create an environment for other trees—like California Coast live Oaks and California Bay trees—to grow beneath them.

Indeed, one of the reasons why Oaks are growing under the canopy of the Eucalyptus forest is that they are being irrigated by the fog drip from the Eucalyptus. They are also being sheltered from the wind, which dries out the trees and the forest floor. These trees are unlikely to survive on the south-facing slopes when the Eucalyptus are destroyed because they did not grow on the south-facing slopes prior to settlement. It's too dry and windy for them. So cutting down Eucalyptus trees will also kill trees native plant ideologues claim to value.

Given that Eucalyptus trees are so beautiful and environmentally beneficial, why do proponents of deforestation want to clearcut them? They claim that the trees are “non-native,” a pejorative term based on an idea we have thoroughly rejected in our treatment of our fellow human beings--that the value of a living being can be reduced merely to its place of origin. But even accepting the false, violent, and unscientific underlying premise that the word can and should be divided into two camps: "native" plants and animals who are worthy of protecting and "non-native" plants and animals who deserve to die, the claim that that Eucalyptus trees, which can be found growing all over California, are “non-native” is being challenged as well. Since Eucalyptus readily hybridizes with other species, some claim “we might now have some California eucalyptus hybrids that could rightly be considered native, or at least have earned full citizenship."